


Everything Happens for a Reason (part 2)

by endless_eight



Series: The NEW Adventures of Sinbad Fan-Fiction Season 2 [16]
Category: The Adventures of Sinbad (TV)
Genre: F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2003-07-01
Updated: 2003-07-01
Packaged: 2019-03-15 23:32:53
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 17,581
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13623804
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/endless_eight/pseuds/endless_eight
Summary: By Merlin and CalvinPart two of the finale. Time runs out for the crew and they must fight the battle between good and evil before it is too late.





	Everything Happens for a Reason (part 2)

**Author's Note:**

> Note from Merlin and Calvin, the archivists: this story was originally archived at [The New Adventures of Sinbad Fan Fiction Season 2](https://fanlore.org/wiki/The_New_Adventures_of_Sinbad_Fan_Fiction_Season_2) and was moved to the AO3 as part of the Open Doors project in 2018. I tried to reach out to all creators about the move and posted announcements, but may not have reached everyone. If you are the creator and would like to claim this work, please contact me using the e-mail address on [The New Adventures of Sinbad Fan Fiction Season 2’s collection profile](http://archiveofourown.org/collections/thenewadventuresofsinbad/profile).

* * *

**EPISODE 16 - EVERYTHING HAPPENS FOR A REASON (2)**  
  
WRITTEN BY - MERLIN, CALVIN

* * *

**TEASER**

It is the final battle between good and evil...

_"Sinbad is gaining too much knowledge," Turok stated as he paced the great hall._

Both sides are equally determined,

_"No," she said. "You and I are enemies, no matter what."_

But only one can come out victorious.

_"I am certain that we will destroy them.  How could a mere sailor and his crew defeat the all-powerful Turok?"_

Will the crew be able to overcome all the odds and live to see another day?

_"I don't want to wait till morning to see if it works."_

Or lose everything in the process?

_"It was an honor sailing with you."_

Find out in the exciting finale of The NEW Adventures of Sinbad coming up next...

* * *

"Sinbad is gaining too much knowledge," Turok stated as he paced the great hall. "He has the spell and the motivation to destroy us if we do not act first."

"Ah, don't worry Turok," Scratch didn't have any worries about the crew stopping the three of them combined.  "I'll make a force field around our fortress.  Then they won't have that easy of a time gettin' in."

"That may halt them for a short while," Turok agreed. "But Rumina has been suffering from great mood swings and there is no telling what she will do.  I fear for the health of our creation."

"She's a new mother, they all act a little eccentric in the beginning," Scratch tried to explain.

As if on cue, Rumina stomped into the throne room with accusations on hand.  "I want to know why I have no control over my future anymore and why I am the topic of all of your conversations," she spat.  "I do not want to be any part of your plans to make a 'demon-child' to take over the world, or any other ridiculous scheme like it."

"Hold your tongue, Daughter," Turok scolded. "This is not for you to decide.  Our very existence on this earth depends on your cooperation."

Rumina slumped down in the throne in the middle of the room and crossed her arms across her chest once more.  She was sick of the two acting as if she was just another one of their pawns.  She wished that it was as it used to be, Scratch being the odd-man out and her and her father creating their own schemes to rid themselves of the crew and other enemies.

~~~  
  
"This is really good, Mustapha, where did you find this?"  Doubar asked as he snacked on a juicy apple.

Mustapha looked up from his own piece of fruit at the large man.  His red rimmed eyes made Doubar feel very uncomfortable.  "I stumbled upon a field of fruit as I was trying to gather breakfast."

Sinbad snapped to attention.  "I KNEW it!" he exclaimed. "See Tetsu, this IS the island we got these bracelets at!"

Tetsu nodded and looked down at the jewelry adorning his wrist.  It had a dull glow, but nothing like it had the day before.  Tetsu looked down at the inventor, who appeared to be asleep beside him.  "Just so you know, Mustapha, I think Firouz will pull through this."

Mustapha glanced at Tetsu hopefully.  "How do you know?"

The man pressed the back of his hand against Firouz's cheek.  "My father taught me a little medicine when I was a child.  Firouz doesn't have a fever, and his complexion isn't quite as pale as it was last night.  He did lose a lot of blood and appears to have suffered a concussion, but you did everything right for him to keep him alive.  You knew not to move his head around too much, and you bandaged his wounds as well as you could have."  Tetsu smoothed out the clean bandage he had replaced Mustapha's blood-soaked sash with across Firouz's forehead.  "If he is still unconscious, it is his body's way of healing itself.  I think it is a good sign that he made it through last night."

Mustapha allowed himself to grin a little.  "Now you sound like him."

Tetsu laughed.  "I'll take that as a compliment."

"You should." Mustapha said quietly.

Maeve raised her eyebrows.  That was the first compliment Mustapha had ever said about Firouz.  She was sure that if Firouz recovered completely, then this experience would have been good for both of the men.  Maeve picked at her own piece of fruit but didn't eat it.  She and Sinbad seemed to be in better spirits than the night before, their outpouring of emotions had cleansed them and allowed her to approach the day with a renewed perspective.  Maeve looked at Sinbad, who was seated next to her and smiled warmly.  He winked at her and handed her another piece of fruit.

*Hey Sinbad, why don't you feed it to her?* Dermott teased.

Sinbad rolled his eyes.  Maeve shushed Dermott away with a wave of her hand and Dermott took to the morning sky.  Doubar eyed his brother suspiciously.  He seemed to be very close to Maeve this morning, and he hardly thought that this was the time for them to be doing this.  "So, is anyone going to tell me what we are all doing here?"

"Doubar, I thought we explained about The Unholy Trinity last night," Maeve said. "We have to destroy them once and for all.  When Dim-Dim contacted me he said that the time is growing short and that if we don't stop them soon, they will unleash a new power on the world and we won't stand a chance."

"I think we should scout ahead and see what we are up against." Doubar said.  "I want to make a plan so that we can all get off this island as quickly as possible."

Maeve glanced at Sinbad, who ignored her look and just smiled at his brother.  "Excellent idea, Big Brother.  I think someone should stay here and care for Firouz while the rest of us can go search around the island for their hideout."

"I'll do it," Mustapha spoke up.  "Let me stay with my friend."  This time it was Rongar who raised his eyebrows.  He patted Mustapha on the shoulder as his sign of approval.  Mustapha offered him a weak smile.  "I can do it."

Sinbad nodded.  "I know you'll do your best," he said. "Now lets get ready to head out.  Mustapha, we're just going to scout around the island.  We should be back before nightfall."

Mustapha nodded and watched his friends gather supplies for the day ahead.  He looked down at Firouz and smiled.  _I won't let you down this time, my friend._

~~~  
  
Rumina watched intently as the travelers neared her fortress.  As much as she wanted Sinbad to be hers, she could not forget the pain he had caused her when he beheaded her father.  She hated them all for their little stunt with the Griffin 's Egg and knew that they had more tricks up their sleeves to dispose of her and her father.

She saw how close Sinbad and Maeve were becoming and the rage inside of her erupted.  She knew that it may have been caused by the changes taking place inside of her, but she felt jealousy, anger, betrayal, and a mixture of many other emotions all wanting to surface at once.  She wanted the crew to stay away, especially that pesky peasant wench, and was determined to stop them in any way she could.  She chanted a few words to her pool and then threw a rock into the water, causing droplets to fly upwards and out and the water to swirl.

Sinbad and his companions were merely walking through the forest when an earthquake started out of nowhere.  They tried to stay upright while the tremors attempted to knock them down and they all tried to stick together.

"I wish Firouz was hear to explain this!" Doubar yelled, trying to be heard over the deafening rumbling.

"This isn't an act of nature," Maeve tried to explain, "Someone wants us to stay away."

"Some _one_?" Tetsu didn't quite understand her explanation.

"Someone like Rumina!" Sinbad answered.  He then rushed over to Maeve as a large crack appeared in front of her and the trembling of the earth nearly caused her and the book to fall into the deep abyss.  He jumped over the opening in the ground and grabbed Maeve so she wouldn't lose her balance and she gave him a grateful look.

Doubar noticed the interaction and wanted to confront his little brother about it later.  He knew that Sinbad and Maeve had always had feelings for each other, but he realized that lately, they had been closer than ever before.  He didn't think that it was his place to interfere, but he wished they had picked a better place and time to confront their feelings.

As Rumina began to lose strength, the earthquake lost power, and quickly died down.  She couldn't sustain a spell for as long as usual because the demon inside her needed so much care.  She stopped her conjuring and was disappointed in her inability to conjure as she used to, all at the fault of her father and that devil.

~~~  
  
_"What are you doing?"  Firouz asked._

_"What does it look like, genius?  If you're supposed to be so smart, figure it out yourself."  Mustapha spat as he looked around the deck._

Mustapha shook his head slowly as the words from an argument the day before tumbled through his mind.  How could he have been so cruel to Firouz, who was supposed to be his friend?  The short man drew his knees up to his chest defensively and watched the slow rise and fall of the inventor's chest.  _He really isn't so bad_ , Mustapha thought.  He wasn't sure why he always picked on Firouz.  Perhaps it was that he felt threatened by the man's place on the crew.  He was so respected by everyone, when it was Mustapha that had joined first.  Everyone liked Firouz and relied on his inventions and sharp mind to get them out of sticky situations, where Mustapha could be easily replaced by any minor crew mate.

Or perhaps it was for purely selfish reasons that he disliked Firouz.  Maybe it was that, deep down, he was incredibly jealous of his deep friendship with Rongar, _his_ best friend.  After all that he and Rongar had been through together, it seemed that he just about replaced Mustapha as soon as he died.  Mustapha hated feeling useless, and he knew that it had been a mistake bringing him back from the dead.  Maeve had meant for her spell to bring back Dim-Dim.  Nobody wanted Mustapha back.  He was expendable, a mere mistake on the spell's part that everyone had been disappointed in.  Mustapha realized that a possible reason he was so cruel to Firouz was because he was an easy target.  Sinbad was the captain, Rongar was his best friend, and Doubar and Maeve wouldn't take any of his insults against them.  Firouz, the absent minded inventor, was the perfect butt for all of his wise cracks.  Picking on the inventor made Mustapha feel better about himself.  He felt that pointing out all of the man's faults made himself feel that much stronger, or smarter, or respected.

While on the otherside, Mustapha had always felt that if he ever had the chance to return to the Nomad, the crew would welcome him with open arms.  He would be back with his friends, old and new, and begin a lifetime more of wonderful adventures.  But Mustapha now realized he had been kidding himself.  He was mistakenly brought back and had to earn the respect and trust from the crew all over again.  A wacky inventor had stolen his rightful place amongst his friends, and Rongar didn't need his friendship anymore.  Mustapha let his hand run down his chest, to the deep scar he had received while in Sashard's dungeon as a child.  As deep as the scar was, his painful realizations about himself ran deeper.

Mustapha was ashamed of himself.  He had not proven his worth to the crew as he should have.  He had stolen The Book of Darkness and Light and nearly given it to Scratch.  That was purely selfish.  His life for the potential suffering of millions that Scratch could cause with the powers the book held was the bargain Mustapha had agreed to.  He had also lost his temper on the Nomad the day before and jumped over the side, causing Firouz to be injured while he got away from the serpent.  Mustapha shook his head and wiped a few warm tears off of his cheeks.  If Firouz died, he would never be able to apologize for all he had done to him.  It wasn't Firouz that he hated, it was himself.

"Mustapha?"

Mustapha spun around and was surprised to see that Firouz had opened his eyes and had moaned out his name.  The short man was at his side in an instant and clutched his hand firmly.  "Firouz!  How do you feel?"

"Where am I?" Firouz asked slowly, his whole body aching intensely. "What's going on?" he looked around him at the small makeshift camp that the crew had set up.  There were the remains of a small fire still letting off a little bit of smoke.  A few blankets were scattered around the ground, and a few pieces of fruit were lying beside him.

"You were injured by a serpent, Firouz," Mustapha said as he grasped the man's hand firmer.  "Are you all right?"

Firouz moaned as he reached up and gently touched the bandage adorning his forehead.  "My head..."

Mustapha shook his head slowly.  "We all thought you were going to die."

Firouz tried to manage a smile, but the effort hurt.  "Where is everyone?"

"They went scouting around the island.  But don't worry, they'll all be back soon," Mustapha said with a smile, relieved that Firouz was conscious.  "Can I do anything to make you more comfortable?"

If Firouz had been more clear-headed, he would have realized that Mustapha was actually carrying on a conversation with him that wasn't erupting into a fight.  But he was slightly delirious and found it hard to concentrate.  "No..." he said quietly, his eyelids growing heavy.  "I just want to sleep."

Mustapha pulled a blanket up to Firouz's chin.  "You sleep then, my friend.  You'll feel better when you wake up.  I know you will."

~~~  
  
"Arghhhhhhhhhhh!"

Sinbad, Maeve, Rongar, Doubar, and Tetsu were all startled when they heard the bloodcurdling scream of a woman near the area of the forest they were scouting.  They were all very frightened, not because of the scream itself, but because of the person they thought it belonged to.

"Do you think it could be Rumina?" Doubar asked as he looked around at the others.

"Doubar, lower your voice!" Maeve whispered. "If it is her, we must proceed with great caution."

"I think that it would be safer for only one or two of us to check it out," Sinbad said, "The others should press on and see if the fortress is close."

"I don't think we should split up," Maeve voiced her concern, knowing that Sinbad would send all of them ahead while he checked on the source of the scream.

"I don't think that the fortress is that much further, the island isn't that big," Sinbad figured. "So I think that you four should go ahead and I'll catch up."

Maeve rolled her eyes at his predictability.  She knew that he would want play the noble hero once again, but had a very bad feeling about the near future.  She knew about the warning in the book and about his impending death, but feared that something else was plaguing her conscience.  Doubar seemed to have the same premonition as Maeve did about the welfare of his little brother.  "I won't let you go without me," he declared.

Sinbad smiled at his brother's overprotection.  He knew that no matter what he said, Doubar would not go with the others.  "All right, but no one else."

Rongar and Tetsu moved forward as stealthily as possible, but Maeve wasn't as quick as them.  She sent Dermott to the skies and walked away slowly.  She didn't seem to want to take her glance off of Sinbad until the last possible moment when their eyes could no longer meet.

Doubar and Sinbad moved towards the origin of the awful sound and sure enough, Rumina was pacing in an opening of the forest.  She was obviously upset over something and wanted some privacy.  She had gone through the force field around the fortress to get away from Scratch and her father.  The two of them had finally made her snap and she wanted to get as far away as possible.  She didn't get very far though.  She was letting out all of her frustrations through screams and pacing and cries for help and Sinbad and Doubar felt kind of bad for watching.

They were crouched behind a large rock in back of Rumina and were trying to be as quiet as possible.  Trying to get a better look, Doubar crawled forward and accidentally snapped a stick with his knee.  He froze after the sound came out and Sinbad shot him an annoyed glance, but Rumina never turned around.  She knew that they were there now, but didn't want them to know that she did.  A grin came across her pale face as she formed a plan in her head to slow the crew down a little.  She wanted to capture Sinbad, partly because she still had feelings for him, and partly because without his leadership she thought the crew would fall apart.  Sinbad suspected that she heard the branch and was just waiting to make a move, and he urged Doubar to be extra cautious until she left.

Before they had a chance to even blink though, Rumina spun around and shot a beam of magic at Doubar.  He didn't fall to the ground in pain though as Sinbad had expected, but instead he disappeared completely.  Sinbad jumped out from behind the rock and confronted the small witch.

"What did you do with Doubar?" he shouted at her.

"Oh, nothing," Rumina played as she played with her lavender veils.

"Where did he go Rumina?"

"He'll be fine," she answered. "As long as you do what I want."

"That being?" he asked.  He remembered being in a situation like this before, when he had traded his life for Serindib's in The City of Mist, over a year ago.

"I want you to come to my fortress with me, and your dear brother will be spared."

Now he was sure that the situation was very much the same, "And I have your word?"

"Yes."

He wasn't sure how much value there was in the witch's answer, but he didn't have time to ponder the situation.  Rumina grabbed Sinbad's arm and created a whirlwind around the two of them, causing them both to vanish into thin air.

~~~  
  
"And then we saw this guard walking down the hall, and I had the idea to knock him out and take his clothes.  But it turned out to be Sinbad, who had had the same idea!  We told him he got knocked out by another guard, though!"  Mustapha laughed, recalling their trip to Gaul , the hometown of himself and Rongar.

"You didn't!" Firouz laughed at the thought of Mustapha and Rongar knocking out Sinbad and then lying about it to him.  The two men were finally getting along.  They had actually been having a real conversation without any blaming or name calling or fighting.  Firouz found it interesting that even though they had lived these adventures awhile ago, he had never heard Mustapha's side of what happened while he wasn't with the group.

"Yeah, but-" Mustapha was going to tell more of the story, but he cut off when he saw Doubar coming through the brush.  The large man simply walked into the clearing alone and sat down on a log across from them.

Firouz carefully worked himself into a sitting position with Mustapha's help and they both stared at Doubar, not quite knowing what to make of him being there.  Doubar saw their eyes on him and glanced over his shoulder, wondering if their eyes were, in fact, fixed on something else.

"What?" he asked the two men seated in front of him.

"What are you doing here, Doubar?" Firouz wondered. "Where are the others?"

Doubar was stumped as to how he got there.  All he remembered was watching Rumina from behind a rock and then walking into the campsite.  "Oh no!  Sinbad!" his eyes became wide with worry for the safety of his little brother and he ran back into the forest as suddenly as he came.

Firouz and Mustapha were both very curious about the whole situation.  They turned towards each other without saying a word and then let their eyes wander back to the spot where Doubar ran back to the woods.

~~~  
  
*Maeve!*

The sorceress looked towards the skies and saw her brother rushing towards her.  She quickly donned her glove and held out her hand for him to land on.  She ruffled his feathers and tried to swallow the nervousness she felt.  If Dermott had come without Sinbad and Doubar, she knew the news couldn't be good.

"What is it, Dermott?" she asked the hawk as Tetsu and Rongar looked on curiously.

Dermott suddenly disappeared from her view as images of Doubar, Sinbad, and Rumina flooded her mind.  She saw the two men crouching behind a rock spying on the sorceress, Doubar being sent away, Sinbad bargaining with the witch and finally disappearing in a whirlwind.  Maeve shook her head slowly, having known the truth since Dermott came into view.  She turned and looked towards the two men.  "Rumina's taken Sinbad, and used Doubar as bait to get him to come with her."

"What are we going to do?"  Tetsu asked as he looked down at his bracelet.  It was glowing with more intensity than ever before.  "If she has Sinbad, we're done for!  She can hold him as ransom and make us give her your book."

"No," Maeve said.  "This has happened before and it all turned out right in the end.  Sinbad is smart and will be able to find his own way back to us."

"And if he doesn't?" Tetsu asked the sorceress.

"Then we find him when storm the fortress.  Either way a showdown with The Unholy Trinity is inevitable.  With or without Sinbad to lead us there."  she decided.  "I think we should press on.  Sinbad wouldn't want us to fall apart now, so we'll keep scouting around the island looking for the fortress and make a plan to save him once we know what we're up against."

Tetsu looked at Rongar and they both agreed that was the best way.  "I'm in." Tetsu said as he pulled his sleeve down to cover the radiating bracelet.  He agreed with Sinbad now; the bracelets were just acting too strange.  It was an uncomfortable feeling, because he couldn't remove the bracelet even if he wanted to and ultimately would have to deal with whatever powers it possessed.

Maeve let Dermott fly off and removed the glove from her hand.  She watched her brother fly into the clear blue sky and silently prayed this was one of the last times she would see him fly through the heavens.  She wanted to hold him in her arms and see him walk over to her.  Maeve turned her thoughts to Sinbad.  Why did this always have to happen to them?  Just when things seemed to be getting better, something had to happen to send them back to their starting point.  She knew that Sinbad wouldn't be around much longer if the spell succeeded, and she wanted him to be with her more than anything, for as long as they did have.  She wasn't sure if Rumina would harm him, either, because the evil sorceress was very fickle with her affections.  Sometimes she wanted Sinbad to father her children, and then others, she wanted him dead.  Maeve shook her head and prayed Sinbad would be all right.

"Come on," she beckoned for Rongar and Tetsu to follow her as she started down the path again.

The trio walked for a little longer and suddenly Rongar pointed to a small cave.  He started heading towards it to get a better look but was unexpectedly thrown to the ground.  Tetsu hurried to the moor and held out an outstretched hand to help the man up.  Maeve looked at the area in front of her, where Rongar had fallen, and realized that a force field was in place.  She put her hands up to it and let them run across the tangible surface.  She felt the powerful black magic radiate under her palms and looked back at Rongar and Tetsu.  Maeve was now sure, without a doubt, that this protected the fortress of Rumina, Turok, and Scratch.

"It's a force field, like when we were stuck in the village with the Vorgon."  she explained.

Rongar nodded, remembering the incidence she spoke of.  He also remembered how the crew had wanted to launch him up and over the wall and had been thankful they had sent the barrel of rocks to crash first.  Rongar looked up at the wall, which was visible as Maeve touched it.  He wondered how they were going to break it to rescue their captain.

"I think we'd better head back to the campsite," Tetsu suggested.  "Maybe we can come up with a plan to break it, or find a spell in your book."

Maeve felt the weight of the large book in her arms and nodded.  "That's probably a good idea."

*Maeve,* she looked up and saw Dermott perch on a branch near her.  *I will go and see if the wall stretches all the way around the fortress.*

*No, Der-* Maeve protested, not wanting her brother in possible danger, but was cut off as he flew away to tend to his task without waiting for her answer.

Tetsu, Maeve, and Rongar walked dejectedly back to their campsite.  Although they had accomplished their task by finding the fortress, new problems had arisen.  Sinbad had been kidnapped and a force field was in place around the cave.  Maeve hadn't been able to break the one in the west village, with the Vorgon and the vanishing people.  She hoped her powers had grown enough to break this one.  They had almost reached their destination when suddenly, Tetsu was on the ground.  He had been knocked down by Doubar, who was running in their direction without paying attention to where he was going.  Rongar and Maeve looked down at Tetsu, who was lying under the large man.

"Doubar, get off of me!" Tetsu pleaded, while Rongar and Maeve laughed for the first time all day.

"Impressive work, daughter," Turok was pleased that Rumina had captured Sinbad.  "I say that we dispose of the captain now so he is no longer a threat to our carefully laid plans."

Rumina's stomach jumped and she spoke up right away.  "Now father, don't you think that he is of more value if he's alive?" she said sweetly as she strolled over to his throne.

"You may be right, Rumina," Turok reluctantly agreed. "Precautions must be taken to keep him in our grasp though."  Turok waved his hand and made four skeleton warriors appear before him, "Take him to the dungeon and make sure that he cannot find his way out."

The guards grabbed Sinbad's arms and dragged him through dark, twisting hallways to the dungeon.  His arms and legs were in shackles, so trying to get away would only hurt his chances of getting out of there alive.  They threw him into a dark, cramped cell with no windows and a small door with a heavy lock.

After a few long hours of no importance, Sinbad heard the cell door open and saw the faint light of a candle.  He was sitting at a wooden table, the only piece of furniture in the room, and watched as the light got closer and closer to him.

"This room could use a little sprucing up," he heard the voice of Rumina very close to him. "Too bad I am forbidden to exert my powers."

She came closer to Sinbad so that he could see her with the dim light of the flame and he noticed the redness of her eyes, as if she had been crying.  He was very shocked to see this because he didn't think that she had a care in the world, except stopping himself and his crew.  He thought that she had everything she could possibly want now that her father was back, and he didn't understand why she was in the dungeon, wanting to create a conversation with him.

"I must be a mess," she said as she rubbed her eyes to keep the tears from falling once more.

"Why did you come here?" he finally spoke, concern in his sea-blue eyes.

"This was a mistake," she cried. "But I had to get away from them."

"Who?" Sinbad wondered. "Turok and Scratch?"

She nodded and took a seat at the table beside him.  She leaned up against the moist wall and placed the candle on the table.  She looked worn out and Sinbad knew that something was wrong.  Usually, she would either be throwing herself or beams of magic at him, now she was just content to be sitting with him.  Rumina knew that Sinbad was a good person and didn't want to see him die anymore.  Her father was back and nothing seemed to have any importance anymore.  She knew her place in life, but didn't know if she wanted to accept it or not, not if it meant following ridiculous orders and being forced to do things against her will.

"What have they done to you, Rumina?" Sinbad knew that she was his enemy, but she had so much sorrow in her that he didn't feel threatened by her at that moment.

She didn't want to reveal her father's plans to her enemy, but she had to let her feelings out to someone, and Sinbad was as good as anyone.  He was the man that she had once loved, even though he could never return her love.  The same man who helped her when she was in trouble even though they were on opposite sides.  "They have plotted behind my back, never asking for my consent, even though the plan involved me more than anyone else."

"Plan?"

Rumina couldn't bear to let the words leave her lips.  No matter how much she wanted to, she could not betray her father and confide totally into the sailor whom she felt she could trust at that time.  She rubbed her small, delicate hand over her aching stomach and shut her eyes in pain, trying to keep the tears from flowing.

Sinbad watched her hand and saw the pain that she was obviously in.  He carefully reached his hand over to her and placed in next to hers, but then pulled it away quickly.  He felt her pain as he simply touched her stomach and he didn't understand what was going on.

"It's growing," she stated as she opened her eyes once more.

Sinbad was in complete shock.  He knew what he felt and couldn't quite comprehend the enormity of what Rumina was telling him.  He knew that whatever _it_ was was going to be a great danger to him and his crew and he wanted to warn them as quickly as possible.  For some reason though, he didn't want to leave Rumina in this condition.  She seemed so downcast and lonely and he knew that something major was happening to her.

She noticed his indecisiveness and decided that she had to let her feelings out on someone.  "I wish that that devil had never come to my father and I!  We were so happy before he came and my father partnered up with him.  I know that he is the reason that my father was brought back to me, but he is also the source of my grief.  I hate him more than any other being on this planet and if I had the strength, I swear, I would-" Rumina then cowered over as the pain in her stomach became even more immense.  Sinbad tried to help her, but he didn't know what he could do for her.

As she tried to regain her composure, she tried to finish her last words.  "I swear that I would destroy this devil inside me, even if it... meant my own life would be lost as well!"

"If you're so miserable, then why don't you leave?" Sinbad inquired as he noticed that her pain was subsiding.  "Why don't you join with us to destroy Scratch for good?"  He couldn't believe what he was suggesting, Maeve would never forgive him for bringing Rumina back with him, but he didn't feel that it was right to leave her here in such a state.

"No," she said. "You and I are enemies, no matter what.  You decided that when you spurned my love so many times, and there is no way to reverse what you have done to me and my father, whom I still love no matter what."

"Then why don't you at least help me escape so that my crew and I can rid you of Scratch by ourselves?" he suggested, or rather hoped, that she would still have enough feelings for him to help him escape from the grasp of Turok and Scratch.

"I'm afraid I can't do that, Sinbad.  I have no way of knowing that you would simply stop with Scratch and leave me and my father alone."

Sinbad knew that she was right in that they would work their hardest to get rid of the entire Unholy Trinity.  As much as he wanted to gain her trust, he couldn't forget all that Maeve had told him.  She was the cause of all of Maeve's pain and he would do anything in his power to rid her of the burden that has hung over her shoulders for so long.

Rumina was torn as to what she wanted to do.  She wanted to get rid of Scratch and knew that Sinbad could accomplish that for her, but she also knew that if Sinbad got out, he wouldn't stop.  As much as she wanted to be freed from the creature inside of her, she could not bear to see her father taken from her once again. "I'll consider your proposition," she finally spoke, contradicting her last statement.

She then picked up her candle and ordered the guard to let her out.  As she rose from the table, she took up Sinbad's warm hand in her own and stared into his eyes.  All that she saw was goodness and warmth and didn't know how he could live such a life.  She then let go and quickly left the dungeon, finally letting her tears go as she made her way through the dark hallways of the fortress.

~~~  
  
Maeve threw a stick into the glowing fire at their campsite.  She looked around at her friends and inwardly wished that Sinbad was there to help them.  She wasn't a leader, but none of her shipmates seemed to want the responsibility, so it had shifted to her shoulders.  "So, does anyone have any suggestions?" she asked hopefully.

Doubar sighed loudly.  "I think we should just storm the fortress and rescue my little brother."

"But there is a force field intact, Doubar.  We cannot break it unless we use some sort of magic."  Tetsu pointed out.  Doubar grunted his response to Tetsu, angry that he couldn't do anything to help his brother.

Firouz struggled to reach for a blanket a few feet from him.  Pain immediately shot to his leg, forcing him to gasp slightly.  Mustapha saw this, grabbed the blanket and handed it to the inventor.  Their conversations that afternoon had solidified their new friendship.  Adventures that they had both lived but never shared their side of had come to the surface and brought a new perspective to their journeys with the crew.  Firouz smiled his thanks to the short man.  "We could always try and reason with them," he suggested to the crew.

Maeve, Doubar, and Rongar all looked at Mustapha, waiting for the snide comment to come as a response to a typical 'Firouz' suggestion, and they were all surprised when it never did.

"You can't reason with the likes of Scratch," Doubar said to fill the silence.  "He's been after my brother his whole life."  Doubar looked up to the star filled sky and wondered what horrors were facing Sinbad at that very moment.  He felt partly responsible that his brother had been taken, and wished that he could have traded places with him.

Tetsu looked at Doubar's worried expression.  "Do not worry, Doubar.  Sinbad is a grown man and very capable of taking care of himself.  I bet you that he will find a way to get himself out without our help."

"What if he can't?"  Mustapha asked, reminding Tetsu of earlier when he had asked Maeve almost the very same question.

"We don't have time to wait," Maeve said quietly, shivering at the thought of Sinbad's impending demise and Dim-Dim's warnings to her.  "We have to take care of them soon, or everything is over."

Doubar suddenly stood up and looked Maeve in the eye.  "This is all your fault, Maeve!" he said harshly.  "If you hadn't run from the Nomad in the middle of the night causing my brother to chase after you on one of your crazy plans, none of this would have happened!  And don't think that I haven't noticed you using your feminine charms on him to make him forget that you just abandoned us all without word!"

Maeve stood up and glared at Doubar.  "Well at least I wasn't the one who allowed him to be kidnapped by that witch!" she countered, the rage inside of her burning.  She knew it hadn't been Doubar's fault, but couldn't stand him pinning Sinbad's situation on her.

Doubar threw up his hands and stomped off into the forest to cool off, muttering things under his breath.  It wasn't Maeve he was particularly angry at.  He just had no way of helping Sinbad and it felt good to place the blame on someone to allow him to let out his frustrations.  Rongar, Tetsu, Firouz, and Mustapha all watched the large man tromp off and then looked back at Maeve.

"Was that a good idea?" Firouz asked the sorceress.

She sat back down and threw another stick into the fire angrily.  "He needs time to cool off," she said through gritted teeth.

In truth, his words had struck slightly true to her.  If she had just told Sinbad in the beginning what was going on, perhaps he would have agreed and let her go.  'No,' she thought.  'He would have never let me go off on the suicide mission by myself, he would insist on coming along, just like he did when he met up with me in the forest.'  She leaned back against a log and looked up into the starry blanket of night.  Either way, Cairpra's vision had drawn Sinbad into the picture no matter what.  She wasn't the one destined to die while using the spell against The Unholy Trinity, Sinbad was.  Maeve tried not to think about the inevitable battle against them, or the fact that Sinbad would die to protect them all.  She suddenly caught a glimpse of Tetsu's rainbow bracelet.

"Can you do anything with that?" she asked the man, gesturing towards the glowing piece of jewelry.  She remembered how Sinbad's had been the key in saving Rongar, Tetsu, and Doubar when they were in the longboat.

He looked down at it and shrugged.  "All it has done is glow.  But I have been thinking that perhaps it was its powers that forced my ship off course and led us to this island.  I feel a sense of foreboding here, like it is meant for me to be here with you all right now."

Maeve nodded and grabbed The Book of Darkness and Light.  "I'll look for a spell that might work against the force field," she said to her friends.  "With the force field still up, we don't have a chance of rescuing Sinbad or getting to The Unholy Trinity."

Mustapha leaned closer to the fire so that Maeve could see his face clearer through the darkness.  "That's where I have a question," he began.  "Why now?  Why do we suddenly have to kill the three of them now?  I know that Dim-Dim told you that, but what makes him think that we'll succeed this time?"

Maeve ran her hand over the page of the book she was on nervously.  She wasn't ready to tell them about the suicide spell or the message Caipra had told her.  "Um, I'm not sure," she lied.  "Maybe the bracelets will help with some added powers for our side?"

Mustapha nodded, satisfied with the answer and laid down on his back near Firouz and Rongar.  "I'm going to hit the hay," he said as he laced his fingers together behind his head.  "I can't think straight when I'm dead tired like this."

Firouz rested his head back down and closed his eyes, following Mustapha's example.  He suddenly jerked up and just as quickly moaned at the pain his quick movement caused.  Rongar looked at him curiously.  "I just had an idea," Firouz panted.  "For an invention that could... help... us." he gasped as he gently palpated the burning sensation in his side.

Mustapha sat up and looked at his companion's pained expression.  "Can Rongar and I help you?" he asked with concern coloring his voice.  Firouz nodded weakly and began to brainstorm for the invention that had formed in his mind.  He began listing supplies that he would need Rongar and Mustapha to collect.  Both men listened intently to his requests and looked towards the forest, where they would be able to collect the items he needed.

Maeve leaned close to the fire so that she could read the words in her book easier.  As she flipped through the pages to find a spell to help disperse the force field, her mind wandered to Sinbad again.  She thought back to the previous day, when they had admitted their mutual feelings to each other in the forest.  Maeve remembered every word he had said to her and the feelings that she had felt as he held her close.  She wished that they could have more time together; it didn't seem fair that as soon as they realized their love that he would have to be taken away.  She almost let a few stray tears trickle down her cheeks but didn't want Tetsu or the others to see and start asking questions.  Maeve wondered if they would all hate her once Sinbad was taken from them as a result of a spell that had been her idea.  She suddenly snapped back to attention as she noticed a spell in the book that could work against the force field.

"This is it!" she exclaimed.

Tetsu hurried over to her side and looked down at the ancient writing on the parchment paper.  He didn't understand magic in the least, but knew by the expression on Maeve's face that it must be good.  "Let's go tonight," Tetsu suggested.  "I don't want to wait till morning to see if it works."

He stood and held out a hand to help Maeve up with.  She accepted it and turned to Rongar, Mustapha, and Firouz.  "You guys work on the invention Firouz has come up with, we're going to go try this spell on the force field."  She began to head into the dark forest.  "Let's get Doubar on the way, I know he'll want to come."

Tetsu nodded and followed the sorceress back to the cave they had discovered that evening.

~~~  
  
"I think that killing Sinbad would bring his crew to us easier, Turok." Scratch suggested.  He had been arguing with Turok about killing Sinbad.  Turok wanted to go with his daughter on this one, but Scratch didn't think that leaving Sinbad alive would help them much in the long run.  "If they hear that their dear captain is dead, they'll come to kill us.  Then we can get rid of them too."

"Let us discuss more important matters," Turok changed the subject. "Such as our creation."

"We'll create a hell on earth using that brat inside Rumina!" Scratch exclaimed.  "No one'll be able to stop us once the pure evil is unleashed!"

Rumina, who had been eavesdropping, finally came to her decision.  She quietly snuck out from behind the column she was hiding by and made her way through the winding halls to the dungeon once more.  She got rid of the guard with her magic and opened the cell door.

"Go on, get out of here," Rumina declared.  Sinbad looked at her with confusion in his eyes. "Now!  Before they realize what's going on!"

"Why are you doing this?" Sinbad asked the sorceress, not quite understanding her motives.

"This is all I will do for you," she said, her voice filled with emotion. "Next time we meet, I will be your enemy and don't think that I'll go easy on you or your crew."

Sinbad stood up and looked at the tiny woman, "Thank you, Rumina, and I hope that you rid yourself of your devil."

Just as he was walking out the door, Rumina turned around and grabbed his arm.  She pulled him to her and engulfed him in a passionate kiss.  He tried to pull away, but she wouldn't let him until she was satisfied.  She then reached behind her neck and undid the clasp on her necklace.  She looked at the large emerald gem on it for a moment and then placed it into Sinbad's hand.

Sinbad was shocked when he gave the necklace a closer look.  He recognized it as the Griffin 's Egg and wondered how it was here, in one piece.  He thought that no evil could touch the egg and that it had been destroyed a year ago in Skull Mountain .

Rumina noticed his confused expression.  "For luck," she stated. "This is of more use to you than it is to me.  Now go that way," she said as she pointed to the passageway to the right. "You can avoid the guards more easily."  Sinbad nodded his appreciation to Rumina and hurried through the cell door, glancing behind his shoulder as he walked into the darkness.

Outside, Maeve was trying her spell on the force-field, but it wasn't working.  "I don't understand," she whispered to the others: Doubar, Tetsu, and Dermott.

Tetsu walked up to the "wall" and punched it to let out his frustrations, but to his surprise, his arm went straight through.  He fell through the wall because the force he put into his punch caused him to lose his balance.  Maeve and Doubar looked down at Tetsu and noticed the radiant colors illuminating from his bracelet as he fell through the force field.  They looked at each other and wondered why the wall dissapated as Tetsu had touched it.

Sinbad, on the other side of the fortress, was also at the force-field.  He didn't know that his friends were so near and wondered if he could find his way back to their campsite in the darkness.  Sinbad had no idea that the force-field even existed because he passed through it at the same time Tetsu punched it, so it dissapeared before he even realized there was one.

Inside the fortress, Turok and Scratch were still discussing their plans for the crew and Rumina's child.  They were interrupted as Rumina ran into the room, her lavender veils trailing behind her.

"What is wrong, child?" Turok asked his daughter, seeing the sadness in her eyes.

"That meddlesome sailor has escaped, father!" Rumina exclaimed, not letting on that she was the reason that he got out of his cell.

"I told you we should've killed him when we had the chance!" Scratch spat.  "Now his crew's probably in here, gettin' ready to attack any second."

"Do not fret, Scratch," Turok tried to calm him down, "I will send out more guards to patrol the grounds."  He waved his hand and an army of skeletons appeared before him.  He sent them off to search for the crew and destroy them if they were in or around the fortress.

Dermott was flying around the fortress thanks to Tetsu's help in getting them through the force-field.  He had perched himself next to a large window during this conversation and heard Turok's plan.  He took to the skies once more and found Maeve's outstretched arm waiting for him.

*Sister, they are sending an army of skeleton's our way,* he warned her.

Sinbad heard this in his head as well and tried to get into contact with Dermott, *Dermott, where are you?*

Dermott squawked with glee when he heard Sinbad's 'voice' in his head.  *Sinbad?  Did you manage to escape?  We're outside of the fortress.*

*I'm outside as well,* Sinbad explained and started walking towards the entrance of the fortress.

Doubar and Tetsu were standing around, not really understanding what was going on.  Maeve could hear her brother's side of the conversation and knew that Sinbad was coming, but Doubar and Tetsu were completely in the dark.

"Sinbad has escaped," Maeve told the two men, "He's trying to find us now."

Just then, a few skeletons came from the entrance of the cave and attacked Doubar.  Maeve picked up her book, determined not to lose it in another fight.  Dermott continued to guide Sinbad to them, warning him of the fight.  Doubar and Tetsu fought off the skeletons, an easy fight considering the small number, but they reasoned that more were probably on their way.  The four decided to step out of the force-field and wait for Sinbad there.

"What if the force-field doesn't let us back through?" Doubar wondered.

"What force-field?" Sinbad asked as they made their way towards the wall.  He was on the other side of where the force-field was and Doubar was very surprised.

"Sinbad," Maeve exclaimed as she ran through the spot where the wall was before. "It is so good to see you."

The others went through the wall no problem, but Doubar didn't understand something. "I thought Dermott said it went all the way around," he stated, "how did Sinbad get through?"

"Maybe it has something to do with the bracelets, Doubar." Tetsu suggested.

"Whatever it is, it doesn't matter," Maeve said. "Sinbad's escaped and we don't have to confront the Unholy Trinity yet."  Maeve was satisfied that she still had more time to spend with Sinbad before the spell was to be used.  She wasn't ready for him to leave her yet.  Sinbad noticed her worry about the spell and he gave her a reassuring smile.

"Let's head back to camp so we can come up with a plan," Sinbad said and they all started on their way back through the forest.

~~~  
  
Back at the campsite, the crew was all overjoyed that Sinbad had made it out of the fortress alive.  Sinbad sat close to Maeve with Doubar on his other side.  He grinned as he looked over at Firouz.  He was elated that the inventor had pulled through and regained consciousness.  Rongar and Mustapha had returned from collecting the items Firouz needed for his invention a little while ago so Firouz was picking at it as he listened to the conversation that was going on.

"So, how did you get out without them knowing, Sinbad?"  Mustapha asked the captain.

"I didn't," Sinbad replied.  "It was Rumina, she let me out."  he looked at the shocked expressions on his friends' faces and shrugged.  "I couldn't believe it either, but she's changed.  She didn't do much of anything to me but talk.  They've done something to her, Scratch and Turok.  She's a victim in their plans, and she's pregnant."

"Pregnant?" Maeve gasped.

Doubar shook his head slowly.  "Are we still going through with this little plan then?  I'm not killing a pregnant woman!"

Maeve narrowed her eyes at the large man.  "Then _I_ will!" she exclaimed.  "I'm not letting this stop me from accomplishing all that we've set out to do.  Dim-Dim said that-"

Sinbad held up his hand, knowing Maeve was getting worked up over his brother's statement.  "She's not _pregnant_ pregnant, Doubar.  She's more of a vessel for an evil being they implanted in her," he explained.  "I've been thinking, and maybe that's the 'ultimate evil' that Dim-Dim told you of." he looked at Maeve.

"It's possible," she said, looking up into the dim sky.  It was now early morning and the stars were slowly fading as the sun rose in the distance.  "Maybe that was a catalyst for all that has been going on with your bracelets and everything."

Tetsu nodded.  "You are probably right!  That actually makes sense.  First this Rumina gets pregnant, or has the child implanted in her, either way and that starts a chain reaction.  Then your master gets in contact with you, warning you about it and our boats start to gravitate towards this island because that is where they are hiding.  Our bracelets were given to us on this island, so they start to glow to warn us of the evil lurking there."  he figured.

"I think there's more to it than that," Sinbad said, looking at the dim glow of his bracelet.  "But I think you're on the right track.  I don't think we have time to figure it out now, though.  We have a big battle up ahead of us today that we have to plan for." he turned to Maeve.  "Maybe you should try to open up the seal now."

Maeve closed her eyes, not ready for it to be time already.  "Why are you asking me, Sinbad?  You know I can't."

Mustapha and Rongar looked at her curiously.  "What do you mean, Maeve?  And what seal?"  Mustapha finally asked.

She shook her head and handed the large book to Sinbad, keeping her eyes on his bracelet.  Sure enough, as soon as his hand grasped the book from her, the bracelet began to radiate brilliant colors, the brightest she'd ever seen.  Maeve shielded her eyes from the light and looked at Sinbad's worried expression.  He laid the large book down on his lap and looked at Tetsu.  "When I touched this book the other day, it did some strange things.  I know you don't understand, but this seal is protecting a spell that Dim-Dim said can be used to defeat The Unholy Trinity.  Cairpra, our master's wife, contacted Maeve and said that I can open it.  I think that you may have to help me, with the combined power of our bracelets.  Will you?"

Tetsu nodded, unsure of what to do, but followed his friend's lead.  Sinbad opened the book up to the seal that he had memorized the warning of.  He grasped Tetsu's hand and laid both of their hands down on top of the seal.  Their bracelets both gleamed with the brightest colors imaginable.  Doubar, Rongar, Mustapha, and Firouz all looked on in astonishment, unsure of what their captain was talking about or doing.  A strong wind seemed to pick up out of nowhere and breezed through their campsite.  The flames of the fire went out and Maeve pulled her hair back out of her eyes to see what was going on.  All of the sudden, the large book lifted up into the air and magical beams started crackling around it.  Sinbad and Tetsu looked up, both frightened and amazed, as a small explosion of rainbow colored light occurred on top of the book.  And as quickly as the wind appeared, it died down and the book settled down onto Sinbad's lap again.

"It worked," he whispered as he looked down at the pages that had been exposed with the seal broken.

"What kind of powers do those bracelets have?"  Firouz inquired, no scientific explanation sufficed for even him.

"More than you'll ever know," Maeve said quietly as she shivered at the realization that the spell was now exposed and ready for Sinbad to use.  She grabbed the book and closed it quickly, not wanting to even see it.

Sinbad's gaze locked on her own and he touched her cheek gently.  "It's okay, Maeve."

She shook her head and fought to not let the tears that burned behind her eyes fall.  She swallowed the lump in her throat and looked away from him.  Doubar grabbed Sinbad's shoulder and turned his brother to face him.  "What the hell is going on, Sinbad?  I know you're not telling us something."

Sinbad sighed and looked down at the colors on his bracelet slowly fading again.  "I didn't want to have to tell you this until later, but I guess I have to." he looked his brother in the eyes and then slowly looked at each of his friends in turn.  "This seal that Tetsu and I just broke was protecting a powerful spell that The Book of Darkness and Light houses.  Dim-Dim said it was the one that would work against Rumina, Turok, and Scratch.  The seal warned that whoever used the spell would succeed but lose their life.  'To be used only in time of great magical strife, but be warned practitioner, the price is your life.'" he recited from memory.  "Maeve left the ship on her own after she read this, wanting to do it herself but I followed and then you all found us both.  She had a vision from Cairpra the other night, and we learned that it isn't Maeve that can use it.  It's me."

Doubar stood up, enraged.  "I don't think so, Little Brother.  You're not doing any stupid spell in that damned book!  You're not even a sorcerer!" he yelled.

Tetsu looked towards Sinbad.  "Maybe I have to do it with you, Sinbad.  The seal broke with the combined power of both of our bracelets."

Sinbad turned to face his friend.  "Cairpra didn't mention that, so hopefully you won't have to, my friend.  This spell is the only thing that can stop The Unholy Trinity, we all have to use it or the whole world is doomed.  You must have been right before.  I'm sure that the bracelets are the things that can defeat the evil, using their power combined with the spell in the book."

Doubar suddenly grabbed the large book from Maeve's hands.  "No, Sinbad.  Maeve probably made up Cairpra's message to save her own life!  I will not let you do this!"

Maeve jumped up and looked Doubar in the eye, "How can you say that, Doubar?"

Sinbad stood up by her side and put his hand on her shoulder.  His blood boiled from Doubar's comments, but tried to remember his brother was just upset and worried about him.  "You know that's not true, Brother.  Maeve wouldn't make up something like that.  I am going to use this spell to save humanity, try to understand-"

"All I understand is my brother is not a magician and is now expected to die while using a spell he can't do!" Doubar shouted, his pain almost tangible.  "I'm going for a walk."  he finally threw the book down on the ground carelessly before stomping off into the woods.

"Me too." Maeve said quietly, not making eye contact with Sinbad, and headed in the opposite direction that Doubar left.

Sinbad watched them both leave and sat down, sadness overwhelming him.  He looked at the tired and worried expressions on Mustapha, Firouz, Rongar, and Tetsu's faces.  They all had no right to suffer on his behalf.  He knew the spell would save all their lives, but he knew it wouldn't save them from the pain when he left them.  Sinbad wondered for a second if he even wanted to do the spell, but that thought quickly vanished when he thought of Dim-Dim and Cairpra, and looked at Dermott who was flying after his sister.  He had to use the spell for the good of everyone.  He had to.

~~~  
  
"It is worse than we feared, the seal has been broken," Turok said as a strange sensation came over him.

"With their weak magic?" Scratch didn't believe the sorcerer. "Well, we'll just have to get rid of that sorceress, right?"

"I suppose so."

"I'll conjure up some demons to do the work for us!" Scratch suggested as he raised his hairy arms in the air.

"No, your demons have been of no use to us yet," Turok disagreed, "Conserve your powers until it is the necessary time."

Scratch didn't like Turok's put down of his monsters.  Sure, they hadn't been that useful in the past few days, but he believed that letting the crew get any closer would only bring disastrous results to them.  He wanted to get rid of them quickly, before they had a chance to do him any harm, but Turok didn't seem to understand his logic.  Scratch didn't want a fight, though, so he held his tongue.

"Can't we just send somethin' to get the tinkerer?" Scratch wanted to accomplish something.  "He was already hurt by one of _my_ monsters."

"Not yet, Scratch," Turok ordered the devil to stop. "We must wait until the appropriate time when we can dispatch of all of them at once."

The two men stopped talking as Rumina came into the room.  She looked much healthier than before and Turok was glad that his creation that was planted in her was resting peacefully and being cared for.  She walked up to her father and sweetly inquired as to what they were plotting.

"We're coming up with a way to kill that crew that keeps gettin' in our way," Scratch offered his explanation, trying to get them to go his way once again.

Rumina had a strange feeling come over her.  She knew that her father and Scratch would be victorious in the battle, but wasn't sure if she even wanted them to be.  She knew that Sinbad wasn't a bad person and she wanted him to live, but she also wanted revenge for all that he had done to her in the past.  Her father's death, how he would not return her love, how he always thwarted her plans.  She knew that she should want him dead and should do everything in her power to make it so, but deep inside of her, she had a shred of hope that he would live.  She pushed those feelings aside though, knowing that they were not proper thoughts to have.

"Would you like me to do anything?" she wondered.

"No, daughter, you must rest and keep your energy high so our creation will prove fruitful in the end."

"And besides, what could she do that I couldn't do in the first place?" Scratch said bitterly as he walked over to a dark corner to carry out his own plans.  
  
~~~

Sinbad sighed and looked around at his friends.  Things were in complete disarray amongst them all.  It was now about midday , and with everyones emotions running high, coupled with a complete lack of sleep, nobody was acting like their normal selves.  Doubar was angry at the world and was completely ignoring Maeve.  Mustapha was being overly nice to Firouz, which was such a change that it bothered Sinbad almost as much as their fighting.  He wanted some normalcy for comfort and found none.  Maeve was angry that Doubar and Sinbad seemed to be having second thoughts about attacking Rumina, and Sinbad felt extremely guilty for possibly having to drag Tetsu into this mess with him.  Sinbad had finally had enough.

"Come on everyone, cheer up!" he said as he stood up to stretch his legs.

Tetsu looked up at the captain from his seat on the ground.  "Sinbad?" he asked.  "I just wanted to let you know, that if I am to be part of the spell, that I will be proud to go out doing something like this for mankind.  I did not become a sailor so I could run from trouble.  I will go out fighting until the end."

Sinbad smiled.  "Thank you, my friend, but hopefully the spell won't need you too."

Mustapha looked up at Sinbad.  "How will we know what 'the spell' wants?"

"I guess we'll find out when we get there," Maeve suggested as she stroked Dermott's soft feathers.

Doubar sneered and Sinbad tried to ignore him.  "Anyway, I think we need to come up with something that can distract Turok, Scratch, and Rumina while I perform the spell.  Hopefully we won't even need a head on battle, maybe we can just sneak in and catch them off guard."

"I think we can do that," Firouz said.  "My invention that we've been working on, it uses a mechanism similar to the device we used to launch the Griffin 's Egg to Skull Mountain last year.  I made this powder, used in my exploding sticks and we can-"

"Oh!  That reminds me!" Sinbad interrupted.  "Sorry, Firouz, your invention sounds great, but you just reminded me."  He reached in his pocket and pulled out the Griffin 's Egg.  "Rumina gave this to me right before I left."

"It's the Griffin 's Egg!" Maeve exclaimed.  "I thought that exploded!"

Sinbad was about to hand it to her to look at when a group of harpies and skeletons arrived armed at the group's campsite.  Mustapha guarded Firouz and blocked an attack from one of the skeletons before it came down on the inventor.

"I'm really getting tired of these guys!"  Sinbad said as he deflected an attack with his saber.

"You guys meet up with a lot of interesting people," Tetsu remarked.  "Compared to this, my adventures are quite boring!"

Maeve used a couple fireballs to eliminate the harpies while the rest of the crew dealt with the skeletons.  The battle was over in a matter of minutes.  "They seem to be losing their touch," Maeve remarked.

"I think we'd better get moving," Sinbad said.  "I don't want it to be nightfall by the time we reach their fortress.  Doubar, why don't you take Firouz to the Nomad where he can use his invention.  I don't want him near the fortress when he sets it off, and you are the best person to make sure he makes it there."

Doubar was about to protest when Sinbad silenced him with his hand.  "Maeve, you and Tetsu are going to accompany me into the fortress where I will use the spell.  Rongar, Dermott, and Mustapha, clear our way there and make sure we can use the spell without being attacked."

"I won't leave you, Sinbad." Doubar said quietly.  "I won't."

"Doubar, it will be all right," Sinbad said as he looked his older brother in the eye.  "Remember when we did this in the village with the Vorgon?  It didn't turn out to be the end then, did it?"

Doubar rested his large hand on his little brother's shoulder.  "Sinbad, you're the best friend I could have ever asked for.  I can't live without you."

Sinbad hugged his brother and felt it strange that he, who was going to die soon, was comforting the one who wasn't.  "Yes you can, Big Brother, you have to live.  I won't let you die too."

Doubar felt the tears burning behind his eyes and held his brother closer.  He saw Sinbad's life flash before his eyes.  He remembered the time he saved his infant brother as the ship with their parents went down.  The baby was stuck on a piece of driftwood, and Doubar had risked his life to save him.  He remembered the time Sinbad had lost his dear friend, Lee, and had declared he was going to become the master of the seas.  And then another time, when Doubar watched his brother walk out of his life to become the cabin boy of a ship headed for a long journey.  He had missed him so much, but had been overjoyed when Sinbad came back as the captain and offered him a job as a crew mate.  Doubar had always felt more like Sinbad's father than his brother, and had indeed cared more for his brother than for himself.  If he could trade places with Sinbad, he would do it without a second's thought.

Sinbad grasped onto his brother's shirt and held him tightly.  "I love you, Doubar.  You are the most important person in my life, and I'm going through with this spell so you can live.  You and the crew, and all the good people in the world.  If I don't do this, Rumina will give birth to the ultimate evil, Turok and Scratch's creation.  I can't say I protect the innocent of the world and then let this happen.  Please understand, Brother."

Doubar finally let a few tears fall down his cheeks.  "I understand, but I'll never agree, Little Brother.  I love you so much."

Sinbad closed his eyes and felt much like he did as a child, being in Doubar's arms.  He couldn't even begin to count the number of times he had fallen asleep in his brother's protective lap as a child.  He regretted that Doubar had given up a life of his own to watch over him, but knew it made Doubar happy to see _him_ happy.  Sinbad eventually pulled out of his brother's arms and patted him lovingly on the shoulder.  "Take care of Maeve, Doubar."  he whispered.  "Don't be angry at her, this wasn't her idea for me to use the spell."

Doubar turned so his brother wouldn't see him cry as Sinbad walked over to Firouz.  "Take care of yourself, Firouz." he said as he knelt down beside the inventor.  "You are a brilliant man, don't let your extraordinary talents go to waste.  I expect to hear all about the wonderful inventions that the Nomad's crew possesses from the other side."

Firouz, unlike Doubar, let his tears flow freely, feeling no need to hide them.  "Sinbad," he said, his voice cracking.  "You are one of the best friends I've ever had.  You supported me when no one else did, and I'll always remember you for that.  You be careful out there, I still have hope that you'll come back to us alive."

Tetsu knelt down next to Sinbad and looked at Firouz.  "If I do not make it back either, please tell my crew what went on here."

Firouz grasped Tetsu's hand.  "Consider it done, but I don't plan of having to." he said quietly.

Sinbad stood up and watched as Doubar lifted Firouz carefully.  His leg had been splinted and bandaged and he couldn't apply any pressure on it even if he had wanted to.  He was still extremely weak and achy.  Doubar took one last look at his little brother.  Sinbad squeezed his shoulder.

"Be strong, Doubar.  Say hi to Dim-Dim when you see him."

Doubar only nodded, too upset to form any words.  Sinbad watched as he carried the inventor off back to the Nomad.  Sinbad felt the knot in his throat rise and choked out a small sob.  Maeve grasped his hand tightly and watched his face as he observed his brother and good friend leave the forest and walk out of his life forever.  Mustapaha, Rongar, and Tetsu watched silently and then followed as Sinbad turned and hurried towards the fortress.

~~~  
  
"If we don't stop 'em now, we might as well give up!" Scratch wasn't feeling too confident in their powers against the spell that could stop them.  He sent monsters to slow the crew down, but they dispatched of them quickly and easily.  Scratch knew that the crew was determined and would stop at nothing to rid the world of him, Turok, and Rumina.

"Father," Rumina sweetly said as she sat down next to Turok's throne and placed her arms on his. "I am certain that we will destroy them.  How could a mere sailor and his crew defeat the all-powerful Turok?"

"I admire your confidence, Rumina," Turok accepted the compliment and then turned to Scratch.  "We must make haste in preparing ourselves for our visitors, Scratch.  We do not wish to be rude to our guests."

Sinbad, Maeve, Dermott, Tetsu, Mustapha, and Rongar were all assembled near the force-field outside of the fortress.  They were crouched in the emerging darkness and were trying to be as quiet and inconspicuous as possible.

"Rongar, Mustapha," Sinbad whispered as he gestured for the two men to come closer.  "I want you two to circle around to the east side of the cave."

Rongar nodded his understanding and Mustapha took up Sinbad's hand.  "Good luck, my friend," he said as he loosened his grasp.

"Be careful you two," Sinbad started his good-bye.  "Take care of yourselves, it was an honor sailing with you."

Rongar shook Sinbad's hand and pulled him into a hug.  He was one of the best men Rongar had ever known and didn't understand why he of all people had to be lost for the greater good.  Mustapha sniffed and wiped at his eye, "The dry air must be irritating my eyes."

Sinbad smiled and patted Mustapha on the back.  The two men then snuck off through the forest to get in position.  Sinbad turned his attention to Maeve once the two vanished from his sight.  "Can I see the book, Maeve?  I want to look over the spell so we won't be going in blank."

Maeve reluctantly handed him the book, which glowed as his hands touched it.  He flipped to the back where the seal had been broken and didn't quite understand what was going on.  "Where's the spell, Maeve?"

Maeve curiously took the book back and glanced down at the page.  There was only a bunch of lines and dots covering the entire page.  "This is written in Alzakian, Sinbad," she pointed out. "I'll just have to translate it for you."

"But if you do that, the book might think you're doing the spell!" Sinbad exclaimed.

"I could always read it to you telepathically," she suggested.

"But I didn't think we could communicate that way," he remembered their conversation earlier.

"It's worth a try, right?"

"What about Tetsu?" Sinbad glanced towards Tetsu, who was quietly preparing himself for what was going to happen. "He can't even hear Dermott."

"You could say it aloud to him," she proposed, running out of answers.

"This is getting a lot more complicated than it was supposed to be," Sinbad stated as he threw his arms into the air, not quite sure if the plan would actually work.  He couldn't think of any better way to do things though, so he turned to Tetsu and Dermott. "Could we please have a moment?" he asked as he gestured to himself and Maeve.

Tetsu nodded and walked off with Dermott perched on his arm.  Sinbad looked at Maeve and she refused to make eye contact with him.  He grasped her shoulders and forced her to face him.  "Maeve, look at me. " he beseeched.

"I'm not going to listen, Sinbad.  I don't want to hear your good-bye speech to me. " she said, finally looking him in the eye.

"Okay," he said quietly as he reached over to stroke her fiery hair.  "But can I at least say that if this works, I will have been happy to give my life so you can have your brother back."

Tears started rolling down her cheeks and she pulled herself against him.  "I wish you could have met the _real_ Dermott."

He closed his eyes and rested his head against hers.  "I already have, Maeve.  I already have.  I want you to know it's better this way."

She suddenly pulled away from him.  "What is?  How can it better?"

"Maeve," he looked into her deep brown eyes.  "I would rather die than live the rest of my life without you."

"Well how do you think _I_ feel?" she asked breathlessly.  "That is the life _I_ have to live!"

Sinbad shook his head and swallowed the lump rising in his throat.  "Then live for both of us." he leaned in and brushed his lips up against hers.  "Do all the things that I won't be able to do.  And know that if I had lived, I would have wanted to spend the rest of my life with you by my side."

She let out a small whimper and hugged him tightly.  "I love you so much, Sinbad.  And I would have said yes."

They held each other closely and let the sadness of the situation overtake them both for a moment.  Maeve held him as tightly as she could, afraid to let go for fear that it would be the last time she'd ever be able hold him her arms, at least on this side of life.  Sinbad gently pulled away as Tetsu and Dermott returned.  He reached over to Tetsu and stroked Dermott's soft feathers.

*Thanks for everything, Featherbrain.  When this is all over, you'd better take good care of your sister for me. * Sinbad said telepathically.  *I want to let you know how great it's been being able to communicate with you, Dermott.  I always knew there was more to you than what everyone else saw.  I hope that you get your real body back and find some adventures of your own.*

Dermott chirped sadly and flew up to a branch nearby, to have a better view of the signal they were waiting to see from Firouz.  *I agree, Sinbad.  And I will take care of Maeve.  You've been a great friend and I thought all your bird jokes were funny.*

Sinbad smiled at the hawk and turned his attention to Tetsu.  He placed his hand on the man's shoulder.  "If we have to do this together, Tetsu, I can't think of a better friend to go out with."

Tetsu managed a smile to mask his fear and shook Sinbad's hand.  "I agree.  You are the one who turned my life around.  I always thought of you kindly."

Sinbad turned back to Maeve and put his arm behind her back.  "I guess we just wait here now for the signal."  The three of them turned and looked towards the direction of the Nomad, unsure of what they were looking for, and half hoping it would never come.

~~~  
  
Doubar and Firouz had finally made it to the shore and Firouz rushed to get his invention set up.  He wished that he could have had a test flare to make sure it worked and did what he wanted, but they didn't have time.

"Come on Firouz," Mustapha whispered as he looked over towards the sky above the Nomad.  He and Rongar were getting a little anxious and wanted something to break the silence of the evening.  Sinbad, Maeve, Tetsu, and Dermott were also waiting for the signal, but apprehensively.

Suddenly, a bright light was shot into the sky by a great force.  As it reached its peak, the light exploded into vibrant colors and slowly dissipated as it fell to the earth below.  Another one went off soon after and another after that.  The Unholy Trinity were taken by complete surprise, thinking that another sorcerer was on the island.  They were very fearful about this and sent Rumina to check it out and take care of it.  If it were another sorcerer she could figure something out, and if it were another trick of the crew, she could dispatch of them easily.

After seeing Firouz's flare, the signal, Sinbad and Tetsu clasped their hands together and went through the force-field with Maeve.  Dermott flew over to Rongar and Mustapha so they knew when to walk through as well.  They walked up to the entrance and paused for a minute.

"I think that I can remember some of the layout," Sinbad said. "But it's kind of like a maze; there are a lot of twisting halls and passages."

"Well," Maeve started. "Some knowledge is better than none at all."

Sinbad smiled at her and then saw Mustapha and Rongar make their move.  They entered the fortress ahead of him, Tetsu, and Maeve to take care of any problems.  Mustapha and Rongar were greeted by a small army of skeletons and they began to fight.

"Gee, can't they be a little more original?" Mustapha wondered, talking about the great amount of skeletons they had had to fight since they arrived on the island.  Rongar shrugged and skillfully kicked one into a wall where it shattered into a million pieces.

As they fought, Sinbad, Maeve, and Tetsu searched around for the correct room.  They followed a long, twisting hallway until they arrived at a large opening.  Sinbad motioned for the others to stop as he peeked around the corner.

"It's Turok," he mouthed to his friends, not wanting to make a sound.

"What do we do?" Tetsu mouthed back.

"Why, Scratch, I believe our guests have finally arrived!" a voice said from within the room.

Sinbad cringed.  He had hoped to arrive without them even finding out about them, but inwardly, he had known it would have been impossible.  Sinbad thought back to the first time he had met Turok, and how he had beheaded him with ease.  He then remembered when he had met Scratch, and the crew had foiled his plans and left him trapped inside the cave.  He closed his eyes and thought about how, if Cairpra and the spell book had been correct, he would not make it out alive.  All that mattered to him now was successfully completing the spell and making sure his friends made it out alive.

"Well, well, dear Captain Sinbad, don't be rude, come in and join the party!" Scratch called out to Sinbad, who was still hiding behind the wall outside the door.

Sinbad motioned for Rongar and Mustapha, who both leapt up and hurried into the elegantly decorated, yet considerably dark, room.  Mustapha swallowed his fear as he saw the devil looking straight at him, and masked his fear with a smirk.

"Hey, Goat-Man, bet you didn't think you'd see me again so soon!" Mustapha joked.  "Except this time, you don't have your lame-o position to stand on, do you?"

Scratch growled and stood up, staring down the shorter man.  "It was _your_ fault you know!  If you hadn't gone and been so _noble_ , I'd still be the Keeper of Damned Souls!  I'm going to kill you again, and this time Death isn't here to save your sorry ass!  You've come back twice now, but third times is a charm... for me!"

Mustapha chuckled and crossed his arms in front of his chest.  "I'm not scared of you, Goat-Man.  And I have five words for you: 'Say something about my mother'."

Out in the hall, Maeve was getting flustered at translating the spell to Sinbad and Tetsu.  Dermott was perched on a small table in the hall, begging her to hurry up.  Mustapha only had so much material to work with, and Turok already seemed to be getting annoyed.

"I'm sorry!" Maeve whispered loudly.  "Alzakian is not the easiest language to translate!  And you keep getting it wrong when you repeat it to Tetsu!"

Sinbad shrugged, it was more difficult than he had anticipated.  First Maeve would try and translate the words to him telepathically, and then he would say them to Tetsu, and by then the words had usually gotten messed up.  Sinbad and Tetsu had decided earlier that they would do the spell together.  After all, the seal and force field only opened with their combined powers, so they figured this wasn't any different.  Sinbad winced as he heard Mustapha get knocked down by a beam of magic from Turok's hand.  He peeked his head into the doorway and saw Rongar hurry over to Mustapha's side.

Mustapha jumped up.  "Let me at him, Rongar!  I'm going to kill him for that!" Rongar held his friend back, he didn't want him to attack Turok and be killed himself.

*Come on, Maeve!  Hurry up!* Dermott beseeched.  *They can't go on much longer!*

Maeve was about to say something but was interrupted as a strong wind suddenly started blowing through the fortress.  Sinbad recognized it as Rumina's whirlwind and leaned his head against the stone wall.  They were running out of time, and he prayed that Doubar and Firouz were all right.  He looked inside the Grand Hall again and saw the tornado dissipate and saw that it had held Rumina, his brother, and Firouz.  He sighed with relief for a moment, that his friends were still in one piece.

"It wasn't a sorcerer, Father!" Rumina shouted angrily.  "It was just this pathetic tinkerer and one of his stupid toys!  Now where's Sinbad?  I want to deal with him myself!" Rumina looked around the dark room in search of the sailor.  Although she had wanted to help him earlier, she now deeply regretted that decision.  He was _inside_ the fortress with his crew, and she didn't like the feeling she got when she knew they had the ability to destroy them all.

Turok stood up and grabbed Firouz roughly by his hair.  "All right sailor, we have waited long enough.  If you do not come out and give us the book, I will dispose of your friends right now!"  he shouted angrily as he shot a blue beam of light towards Mustapha and Rongar, causing them to fall to the ground in pain.

*You two get the spell right NOW,* Dermott commanded as he flew into the room and right into Rumina's face.

"Aughhhh!  Get him off me!" Rumina shrieked.

Turok dropped Firouz and hurried over with Scratch to the tiny sorceress.  It wasn't so much Rumina they were worried about, but their creation that her body held.  Mustapha, Rongar, and Doubar stood up and watched the brave hawk attack Rumina.

"Come on, you guys!" Mustapha said as he unsheathed his sword.  "Let's let them taste steel!"

Doubar grinned and joined after Mustapha and Rongar to attack The Unholy Trinity.  They knew Sinbad needed more time, and were going to do their best to give it to them.

"Maeve!" Sinbad exclaimed from his seat in the hall.  "Write it down!  It will be faster!"

She looked up.  "Do you have anything to write with?" she asked breathlessly.

Sinbad looked into the hall at Firouz, who was still on the stone floor, watching his friends fight their enemies.  "Firouz!" he called.  "Your bag!"

Firouz looked down at his waist at the bag Sinbad was speaking of.  He crawled across the floor, his leg in too much pain to try and stand, and unhooked the bag from his belt.  He inched closer to the opening of the door and slid it across the cold stone floor to the waiting hands of his captain.  Sinbad quickly smiled his thanks and dug inside, in search of a piece of parchment and something to write with.  He hastily found what he was looking for and shoved them into Maeve's hands.  She took the writing instrument and, hands trembling, began to write down the spell for Sinbad and Tetsu.  It went pretty quickly, because she had already translated it in her mind, it was just the act of saying it to Sinbad who had to say it to Tetsu that caused the problems.  She quickly handed the piece of parchment over to Sinbad.

Sinbad looked at Tetsu, who nodded slowly.  They grasped hands and looked at the spell together.  They slowly began to read the ancient words in unison, their bracelets glowing brighter with each passing word.  Maeve slowly peeked her head into the Grand Hall to see if it was having any effect.  She saw that Dermott had been thrown to the ground, and that he wasn't moving.  Maeve gasped and forced her attention back to Sinbad and Tetsu.  They read the words bravely, effortlessly, and she was in awe of their courage.  She shielded her eyes as the light from the bracelets engulfed the dark room, causing it to be lit with a blinding light.

"What's going on?" Rumina gasped, falling to her knees as she felt herself grow weaker.

Turok fell to the floor beside her and lifted his hands in an attempt to make himself and Rumina vanish from the room.  He couldn't, and opened his mouth in shock.  "Our powers.... they... are being... drained!"

Rumina choked back a sob and looked at her father's startled expression.  "I'm going... to kill.... you Sinbad!  I'm.... going... to..."

Scratch looked at the bright light emerging from the hall, slowly filling the room they were in with a pale white light that grew brighter with each passing moment.  He lifted his hairy arm and tried to zap the people in the hall, but he too soon realized the truth.  "It's too... late." he admitted as he sunk to the floor next to his two comrades.

A strong breeze picked up in the room, blowing papers and turning the pages in The Book of Darkness and Light.  Maeve watched her two friends in amazement, never truly realizing the enormous power the bracelets held until this moment.  Her eyes filled with unshed tears as Sinbad looked up from the spell and gazed into her eyes with his own.  She closed her eyes to not only block them from the blinding light, but because she knew they were on the last line and didn't want to see the result on Sinbad and Tetsu's part.  Sinbad and Tetsu finished the last line to the spell and the bright light died down.  Sinbad felt himself sink to the floor, his body suddenly very heavy.  He looked over at Tetsu, and then at Maeve before he allowed himself to close his eyes.  They had succeeded, he was sure of it.  He tried to open his eyes once more to look at Maeve, but couldn't.  He could feel himself slipping away from this life, and there was nothing he could do to stop it.

Maeve finally opened her eyes and saw her captain lying motionless on the floor next to Tetsu.  She let out all of the unshed tears and kneeled down beside him.  She turned him over onto his back and let her hand run across his cheek.  She buried her head on his chest and felt intense sobs rack her body.  She felt as if her soul and heart had been ripped out and she cried for the loss of her dear captain.  She didn't even look up when she heard Doubar, Rongar, Mustapha, and Firouz enter the hall behind her.  Maeve couldn't think of a life without Sinbad, and she wished she could just lay down and die beside him.  Nothing mattered anymore.  Not Rumina, or Dim-Dim, or even Dermott.  All that mattered was that Sinbad was dead.  He was dead.

"The bracelets!" Firouz suddenly exclaimed, emotion filling his voice.

Maeve looked at Sinbad and Tetsu's bracelets and saw the bright light returning to their rainbow colored surface.  She looked back at her friends and saw their expressions turn from sadness to astonishment.  She turned around and felt her hand rise as it rested on Sinbad's chest.  He was breathing!

Sinbad slowly sat up and rubbed his forehead.  "What happened?"  Maeve felt like she was going to pass out.  She threw herself at him and he held her close.  He looked at his friends faces and realized that the spell had worked.  "Am I dead?" he asked slowly.  He then felt Maeve's body against his own and saw smiles break out on his friends faces.  He was alive.  He didn't know how, and to be honest, he really didn't care.  Sinbad looked over at Tetsu and saw a confused expression on his face as he looked at himself.

Doubar walked over and slowly reached his hand out to his little brother.  Sinbad accepted it and stood beside his friends, his arm around Maeve.  Tetsu got up and headed into the Grand Hall to see what the spell had accomplished, the crew followed curiously behind.  Tetsu saw Rumina, Turok, and Scratch all barely conscious on the floor.  Maeve looked at Dermott, who was still in the same place she had last seen him.  She hurried over to his motionless form, and began to weep.  The spell had not returned her brother to his human form.  Sinbad was at her side in an instant.  He didn't understand!  Why didn't it work?  Rumina's powers were gone, so Dermott should be back!  He slowly reached out and ruffled the unconscious hawk's soft feathers.  The bracelet glowed a bright rainbow of colors and suddenly the hawk was engulfed in a soft white light.  Maeve watched in astonishment as the light suddenly grew.  The crew shielded their eyes but kept watching.  As the light died down, they could make out the shape of a young man lying where Dermott had been.

"Dermott..." Maeve whispered.

The young man slowly opened his eyes and looked around confused.  He looked at Maeve and Sinbad's odd expressions and suddenly looked down at himself.  He lifted up a hand to his face and was shocked that it was a hand.  It was _his_ hand!  He gasped and tried to stand up on his unsteady legs, using a nearby ladder for support.  As soon as he worked himself into a standing position, Maeve, who had been completely frozen, threw herself towards him and held him tightly.  Tears of great joy were streaming down both of their faces as they embraced for the first time in many years.

Dermott looked up over his sister's shoulder and mouthed a thank you to Sinbad, who was still surprised that the bracelet held so much power.  All of the others were in the dark as to what was going on.  They hadn't been let in on Maeve's secret and had no idea who the young man was.  Before the three could explain though, Sinbad let out a pained gasp.  He felt a burning sensation on his side and he reached in his pocket to see what it was.  The Griffin 's Egg that he had placed there earlier was now glowing intensely in his hand.  An emerald aura surrounded the jewel and Sinbad's bracelet began to radiate once again.  The egg floated into the air and began shining more violently.  A flash of light then filled the entire room and everyone was forced to shield their eyes from the intensity.

The room became dark again and Sinbad saw the Griffin 's Egg lying on the ground next to a staff.  He was taken by great surprise to see this and everyone froze in shock once again.  They watched as a hand carefully grasped the staff and the owner stood to face them all.

Doubar swallowed the lump in his throat and tried to keep back his tears as he watched.  His voice cracking with joy, he managed to finally say the words. "Master Dim-Dim!"

Dim-Dim walked over to his pupils and tears filled his eyes.  He put his hand on the large man's shoulder and squeezed it gently.  Doubar held out his arms and embraced the old man in a hug.  Sinbad and Maeve hurried over and joined in.  Mustapha, Rongar, Firouz, and Tetsu were confused but happy as they watched the joyful reunion take place.  Dim-Dim looked over Doubar's shoulder at Turok who was trying to crawl away inconspicuously.  Doubar turned and followed his beloved tutor's gaze.

Dim-Dim raised his staff above his head and narrowed his eyes at the evil sorcerer.  "I think the world has seen enough of _you_ , Turok."  he lowered the staff and a beam of magical light shot towards the powerless man and encased The Unholy Trinity in the greenish light.

Sinbad watched the three of them slowly disappear before his eyes.  He closed them, not wanting to see Rumina's gaze as she was destroyed.  He felt bad knowing that she was more human than the other two, and that she had loved him once.  Sinbad slowly opened his eyes and found himself and his crew on the beach near the Nomad once again.  Seagulls flew overhead and the gentle crashing of the waves filled him with a sense of peace.  He thought for a moment that he had dreamed the whole ordeal, but as he saw Dermott and Dim-Dim, he knew that it had been for real.

Dim-Dim walked over to Sinbad and put his hand on his shoulder.  "I bet you're wondering what's been going on with your bracelet, right Sinbad?"

Sinbad grinned.  "Maybe a little, Master Dim-Dim."

The old sorcerer returned the smile and took a deep breath of the fresh sea air.  "All will be revealed in due time.  Everything happens for a reason Sinbad.  Never forget that."

"I never did," Sinbad said as he watched Maeve walk over to him with her brother following closely behind.

Sinbad lifted up his arm and let her come close to him.  She ran her fingers through his silky hair.  He kissed the top of her head and shook Dermott's hand.  Maeve turned her glance to Dim-Dim.  "You don't know how good it is to have you back, Master Dim-Dim.  And I have a message from your wife: 'Your dinner has grown quite cold.'"

Dim-Dim chuckled.  "I guess I have been gone a little long."  The crew laughed and rejoiced at their successful mission, happy to have all survived and conquered their greatest enemies.

~~~  
  
"So, Rumina, Turok, and Scratch are _inside_ the bracelets?"  Doubar asked as he sat at the table in he galley next to Dim-Dim.

"No, Doubar.  Just their powers.  I sealed The Unholy Trinity inside the fortress, where they won't be a bother to anyone but each other.  They can't ever get out, and they don't have any powers to try.  Their powers were transferred to Tetsu and Sinbad's bracelets, which is how Sinbad was able to free my spirit and change Dermott back to his true form."

"So where was your spirit all this time?" Doubar asked, still very confused at this whole ordeal.

Dim-Dim smiled.  He had already explained it to Doubar numerous times in addition to the time he told the whole crew.  "My spirit was being held by Turok until Rumina transferred it to the Griffin 's Egg.  She was angry at her father and thought that would be a good way to get back at him.  I'm actually very surprised she gave it to Sinbad.  She's a mystery, that one."

In the fortress, Rumina, Turok, and Scratch were all sitting around the Grand Hall, depressed.  They couldn't believe they had lost such an important battle to Sinbad and his meddlesome crew.  Not only that, but their powers had been drained and they were now trapped inside the fortress with no way out.

"If it weren't for Turok, I could have gotten rid of them before they made their way here!" Scratch argued.  He had known all along his plan had been the best and it was a bad idea to let the crew freely waltz into their fortress.

"You two don't have any problems!" Rumina cried.  " _I'm_ the one that's going to be bearing a goat-child for nothing!"

Scratch and Turok looked at each other with their mouths open.  They slowly let the realization sink in that their creation was now going to be nothing more than an ordinary... goat-child.

Doubar put his head in his hands.  "This is all too much, Dim-Dim.  Why did Sinbad get such a power as the bracelet?  Why him and Tetsu?"  Dim-Dim hadn't gone into too much detail about the bracelets yet.

Mustapha, who was also in the galley enjoying a small tanker of ale, flipped through the pages of The Book of Darkness and Light.  He felt good to be trusted with it now, and stopped suddenly as he saw the page he was looking for.  "Look, Doubar." he pointed to the page at the end of the book.  "Maybe this will help."

Dim-Dim pulled the book in front of him.  It seemed that the book's pages grew as time went by.  He read over the writing on the page to himself.  _The Rainbow Bracelets are given to only the purest of souls and enable the wearers to tap into their own elemental powers.  The rainbow bracelets are a symbol of goodness and can only be activated at the precise moment when evil threatens the existence of humanity._   Dim-Dim smiled.  He knew that he had made the right decision by giving the bracelets only to Sinbad and Tetsu.  He wouldn't tell anyone that fact though, he didn't want them to know that it was him that had to make the choice of who received them.

Doubar pulled the book into his view and read through the writing.  "But, that doesn't explain why the powers of The Unholy Trinity went to Sinbad and Tetsu."

Dim-Dim smiled patiently.  "The book says that the wearers have to be the purest of souls.  This way it is ensured that the powers of evil will be controlled and not used for personal gain."

Mustapha rolled his eyes at Doubar's incessant questioning.  He was content just knowing Scratch was out of the picture.  He smiled at the two men and headed updeck to get some fresh air.  He closed his eyes and welcomed the cool breeze that ruffled his hair and new shirt.  Mustapha winked as two girls from Tetsu's crew walked by and giggled.  He linked arms with them and headed over to where Firouz was sitting, only watching the festivities and not partaking in them.

He put his arm around Firouz's shoulders.  "Have you ladies met my friend Firouz yet?"

The girls giggled as Firouz smiled at Mustapha.  He knew that they would still have problems ahead of them, but they could at least get along now.  Rongar smiled at the exchange and walked over to join them.

Sinbad smiled at Mustapha's gesture as well and was very pleased at their acceptance of each other; it was about time.  He was about to walk over and talk to them when he saw Dim-Dim heading updeck.  "So, where are you headed, Master?"

Dim-Dim smiled and looked out towards the sea.  "I've heard Basra is nice this time of year." he joked.  "That's where I'm headed.  I'd like to visit my wife and daughter."

Sinbad grinned and followed Dim-Dim's gaze.  "I know they can't wait to see you."  Sinbad patted the old man on the back and headed over to Maeve who was standing near the railing, watching her brother climb the ropes.

"What's he doing up there?" Sinbad asked as he shielded his eyes from the sun to watch the young man.

"He's going to break his neck, that's what." Maeve smiled.  "He's only been a human for two hours and he already wanted to go up to the crow's nest again.  That was his favorite spot to perch."  Sinbad ruffled her hair and she smiled at him.  "You know, I really thought you had died before."

He turned and looked out towards the gentle waves.  "You're not the only one." he admitted.  "But I have to admit, I like the way it turned out much better."

"I think he had something to do with the bracelets," Maeve said.  "That must have been why Cairpra wanted you to do it.  You and Tetsu probably _would_ have died if you didn't have those bracelets to protect you."

Sinbad looked down at the bracelet and smiled.  "Yeah," he agreed.  "I think you're right."  He wanted to change the subject so he suddenly thought of something Maeve had said earlier.  "So, Maeve, did you really mean it before when you said you would have said yes?"

Maeve blushed and turned to face him.  "I guess you're just going to have to wait and see," she teased.

Sinbad laid his hand on top of Maeve's and looked out towards the sea again.  He knew that there would still be problems ahead, and great adventures to go with them, and he looked forward to it.  He knew that his friends would always be there for him, and he couldn't wait to experience all that life still had to offer him.  He turned and looked at Doubar, who had taken the tiller.

"Let's set sail, Big Brother!" he called to Doubar.

"Where to, Little Brother?" Doubar responded.

Sinbad glanced over at his beloved crew.  "To wherever the wind may take us."  As he looked out towards the sun setting, he realized it was a good place to go.  The future had much still in store for him, and he was ready to embrace it all.

* * *

_Fin_


End file.
